Yosemite National Park suffered its 17th death this year, when a climber fell to his death off the face of Half Dome Monday afternoon.
The park normally has about 12 to 15 fatalities a year, making the first eight months of 2011 already a record-breaking year. High, swift, cold rivers and creeks and a record number of visitors to the park this summer have contributed to the deadly year, but park officials recently told the Mammoth Times they are not sure exactly what other factors might be involved, if any.
